Fact Sheet:
The Failure of Sanctions Against Iran

(Updated March 2013)

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More than four years have passed since Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Hassan Qashqavi's December 2008 statement that “Iran will never suspend uranium enrichment.” His prediction now seems mostly accurate and, in fact, Iran has accelerated its enrichment activities, announcing in January 2013 the intention to install more sophisticated centrifuges in its Natanz plant to speed up the enrichment process.

“We haven't really moved one inch toward addressing the issues,” Mohamed ElBaradei, then director-general of the International Atomic Energy Agency told the Los Angeles Times in 2010. In a 2012 interview with the Financial Times of Germany, Yukiya Amano, new director general of the IAEA, announced that "what we know [about Iran's nuclear program] suggests the development of nuclear weapons."

The entire world seems to agree that Iran should not be allowed to develop nuclear weapons. Since the military option to deter Iran is a scenario that few want, or believe can work, the principal tactic that has been adopted to prevent Iran from creating a bomb is sanctions. Sanctions, imposed either unilaterally or multilaterally, are a peaceful and diplomatic avenue to make hardships for the regime - both economically and politically - to put them in a situation where a choice must be made between continuing the nuclear program or watching their country suffer. These sanctions have been internationally accepted since the adoption of the UN’s Security Council Resolution 1737.

The United States and European Union have been the biggest supporters of sanctions against the Iranian regime and have been passing bills to impose sanctions for a number of years. Through the West's leadership, many international shipping agencies, traders, bankers and global insurance companies have also pulled their dealings with Iran.

Unfortunately, though, these moves have so far done little to deter Iran from its nuclear ambitions.

Despite the failure of three rounds of sanctions, Obama Administration officials said in January 2010 they intended to press for a new round of sanctions even as Russia and China continue to balk at the idea. Meanwhile, in early February 2010, Obama announced new unilateral sanctions by the United States, freezing “the assets in U.S. jurisdictions of a Revolutionary Guard general and four subsidiaries of a construction firm he runs for their alleged involvement in producing and spreading weapons of mass destruction.” A day later, Iran announced it had begun enriching uranium to a higher level of purity, 20 percent, which is a step closer to producing weapons-grade uranium.

Former CIA director Leon Panetta said that while sanctions carry the possibilty to create serious economic problems and weaken the Iranian government, they do little to deter Iran’s “ambitions with regards to nuclear capability.” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that sanctions have not done nearly enough to affect a change in Iran's nuclear program and, in testimony before a Senate intelligence committee in February 2012, CIA Director James Clapper said, "The sanctions as imposed so far have not caused [Iran] to change their behavior or their policy."

While the efficacy of the sanctions themselves is debatable, they are doomed for failure if not implemented correctly and unwaveringly supported. The United States, though, has had issues fully implementing sanctions against Iran.

The Congress has passed a number of bills and the White House numerous executive orders regarding Iran sanctions - - in June 2010, November 2011, February 2012, and July 2012, to name a few - but the efficacy of these bills have been severely weakened by loopholes or waivers attached to them allowing the U.S. to delay their implementation. President Obama's Executive Order 13590, imposing sanctions on Iran's central bank, was delayed more than six months out of fear it would stimulate rising oil prices. Moreover, in March 2012, President Obama granted exemptions to Japan and ten European nations to allow them to continue doing limited business with Iran.

To date, no U.S. Administration has fully implemented any of the sanctions against Iran in place since 1996.

Likewise, European Union sanctions have fallen mostly on deaf ears. The EU has at times been unable to completely restrain nations from dealing with Tehran and, more importantly, Iran has been one of Europe's major foreign oil exporters. This need for crude oil has allowed Iran the maneuverability to get around sanctions, as profit from sales lessens the financial impact of sanctions. In January 2012, however, the EU finally passed an "unprecendented" resolution to embargo all Iranian oil and, to support its implementation set to begin in summer 2012, Saudi Arabia has promised to fulfill Europe's gas needs.

Also minimizing the impact of sanctions are UN member nations that supported Resolution 1737 in 2006 but continue to trade with Iran, proving to Iranian leaders that UN resolutions and international threats need not be taken seriously. Russia, China, Turkey and India, for example, have helped the Iranians steer clear of the negative consequences that sanctions place on its economy. In April 2012, Turkey and India announced that they are looking to lower their trade levels with Iran, however Russia and China both vigorously oppose sanctioning the regime. In 2012, Russia’s Foreign Ministry said that sanctions are "deeply mistaken policy" and would be unlikely for Iran to "make any concessions or any corrections to its policies” because of sanctions.

History also works against the success of sanctions. As Simon Henderson noted, “Iran is unlikely to give up its nuclear program after seeing what happened to Qaddafi and Saddam Hussein, who were both driven from power, after acceding to international pressure to give up their nuclear ambitions" Simon Henderson.

Developments in the Failure of Sanctions:
(Listed in Reverse Chronological Order)

March 2013:

- A partial tally of the business between U.S. companies and Iran for 2012 found a distrubingly high amount of trade. US-listed companies made more than $540 million in gross revenue and $15.5 million in profits from their business with Iran in 2012 — and that's only counting 30 or so large companies that made disclosures since mid-February 2013. While the numbers underscore the difficulty of maintaining tight sanctions in a global economy they also hide a lot of nuance and variation: Companies based outside the US accounted for 99% of the revenue and three-quarters of the profit; $414 million in revenue came from Statoil ASA, the Norwegian oil and gas company that works with the National Iranian Oil Company; biggest disclosure by a US company came from auto-parts maker TRW Automotive Holdings, which said it collected $8.3 million in revenue and $377,000 in profits from non-US subsidiaries that sold products to Iranian companies. Dell, the Texas computer company, disclosed a whopping $169.90 in revenue from Iran.
     (Quartz, March 28)

- Trade between the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Iran fell by nearly a third from 2011 to 2012 as Western sanctions finally began to affect this main avenue of trade for the Islamic Republic. Iran and the UAE have been close trade partners for decades. While banks in the UAE were slow to initally follow suit with sanctions, given their dependence on the strong revenue stream during the tough times since the financial crisis triggered a collapse in the real estate markets of Dubai and then Abu Dhabi, years of U.S. lobbying has led to more strictly enforced regulations.
      (Financial Times, March 26)

- While South Korea announced that it has dramatically decreased the pace of its crude-oil imports from Iran, Chinese officials say that their Iranian oil imports continue unabated. Imports of oil by Southe Korea were down 30% in February 2013 compared with February 2012 and down 25% versus January 2013, according to preliminary data from state-run Korea National Oil Corp. China, meanwhile, saw its imports from Iran rise by 2.7% in the first two months of 2013 after rising by 74% on year to 2 million tons.
      (Wall Street Journal, March 22)

- Fifty-six members of the U.S. House of Representatives sent a letter to Treasury Secretary Jack Lew and Secretary of State John Kerry urging them to take action against Iranian reflagging, a tactic that Iran uses to disguise the origin of vessels carrying illicit goods to and from Iran. The letter, sponsored by Reps. Peter Roskam (R-IL) and Rep. Ted Deutch (D-FL), calls on State and Treasury to "seriously consider sanctioning registries that knowingly participate in efforts to reflag oil tankers and cargo vessels" operated by designated Iranian companies.
      (House of Representatives, March 13)

- According to a report from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Iranian oil shipments advanced 13 percent in February 2013 even as the U.S. implemented additional sanctions complicating sales from the Islamic Republic. Countries purchased 1.28 million barrels a day from Iran that month, compared with an 1.13 million barrels daily in January 2013. "The only thing clear is that the current stalemate between Iran and the West is unsustainable," the IEA said in the report. "Sooner or later, something has to give."
      (Bloomberg News, March 13)

- An investigation conducted by the federal prosecutor's office of Germany revealed that Iranian front companies based in Istanbul had transported 941 items with nuclear applications through Turkey. According to the report, German police detected that materials with nuclear applications obtained in Germany and India were transported to the Mitech company in Iran through Turkey by an Iranian national, Hossein Tanideh. Mitech is under US and European Union-imposed sanctions. Turkish police found out that 91 items with nuclear applications were sent, on seven occasions, to Iran from Germany via Turkey, while 856 nuclear items were sent, on four occasions, from India to Iran via Turkey.
      (Today's Zaman, March 12)

- Trade between Iran and China dropped by 18 percent in 2012, to $37 billion, due to a number of banking sanctions imposed on the Islamic republic. "Iran-China trade fell to $37 billion in 2012 from $45 billion in 2011," Assadollah Asgaroladi, director of the Sino-Iranian Chamber of Commerce, was quoted as saying. "Iranian exporters and importers who are seeking increase in trade volume are facing banking problems."
       (Agence France-Presse, March 4)

- A Chinese businessman indicted in the United States over sales of missile parts to Iran is still making millions of dollars from the trade, say security officials who monitor compliance with Western and U.N. sanctions. Businessman Li Fangwei has earned at least $10 million from illegal sales to Iran since his indictment by the New York County District Attorney in 2009. Li's alleged activities may point to Iran's ability to circumvent Western sanctions. A U.S. State Department official said Li had been sanctioned because of his "proliferation to Iran" since 2009.
       (Reuters, March 1)

February 2013:

- Bipartisan legislation was introduced to both Houses of the U.S. Congress calling for greatly expanded sanctions on Iran, amounting to what would potentially be a commercial trade embargo if fully carried out. The measure looks to build on existing laws that restrict business dealings with Iran, widen the list of blacklisted Iranian companies and individuals and potentially block Iran's access to foreign bank assets held in euros. The legislation - called the Nuclear Iran Prevention Act - would also penalize foreign companies and individuals that violate the American sanctions by threatening them with restrictions on doing business with the United States.
       (New York Times, February 27)

- A bipartisan group of 36 U.S. Senators - including Diane Feinstein [D-CA] and Marco Rubia [R-FL] - wrote a strongly-worded letter to the European Council, urging the bank to deny Iran access to its Euro-denominated foreign exchange reserves by stopping the Islamic Republic from using the "Target2" clearing system. "We are writing to request your immediate support in close a significant loophole in US-EU sanctions policy," said the letter. "We strongly urge you to take all necessary measures to immediately cut off Iran's ability to use its foreign-held euros by prohibiting direct or indirect access to Target2 services by or on behalf of accounts owned or controlled by the Government of Iran or its affiliates. We are concerned that these euro conversions in turn free up significant funds to finance Iranian imports, stabilise Iran's monthly budget and allows the regime to continue to engage in sanctionable and illicit activities."
       (The Telegraph, February 26)

- According to details released from a confidential report of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA),  Iran has already begun installing roughly 180 advanced IR-2M centrifuges at its main uranium enrichment plant in Natanz. While the centrifuges were not yet operational, such machines could enable Iran to significantly speed up its accumulation of material that could be used to make a nuclear weapon. Iran alerted the IAEA in January 2013 of its intention to upgrade the Natanz enrichment facilities.
       (Jerusalem Post, February 22)

- According to a Gallup poll conducted in Iran during December 2012, a majority of Iranians (56%) say sanctions the United Nations, the U.S., and Western Europe imposed on the Islamic Republic have hurt their personal livelihoods a great deal. However, a majority of Iranians (63%) are also seemingly willing to pay the high price of sanctions and say that Iran should continue to develop its nuclear program, even given the scale of sanctions. One in two Iranians supported their country developing its own nuclear power capabilities for nonmilitary uses. Only 1 in 10 Iranians says their own government is most to blame for sanctions.
       (Gallup World, February 11)

- Iran announced the purchase of two oil supertankers from China, each having the cargo carrying capacity of 2 million barrels of crude oil, and three other smaller ships which all joined the Iranian fleet at the begining of 2013. The Atlantis and the Infinity oil tankers were part of a $ 1.2 million agreement between Iran and Chinese shipbuilding companies signed in 2009, under which 12 oil tankers are to be built.
       (Iranian Students' News Agency, February 8)

- With sanctions still hurting Iranian oil exports to the West, the Islamic Republic and Pakistan announced the start of construction on a gas pipeline scheduled to be completed by December 2015. The Iran-Pakistan pipeline, projected to cost $1.2-1.5 billion, will export 21.5 million cubic meters of Iranian natural gas per day to Pakistan when it comes on stream. Iran has pledged to secure $500 million to complete the Pakistani section of the project and the rest will be provided by the Pakistani government.
       (Tehran Times, February 7)

- A European Union court ruled that the EU should lift sanctions it imposed on one of Iran's largest banks, the second such judgment that could complicate Western efforts to increase pressure on the Islamic Republic. In its ruling, the EU's General Court said the EU had failed to provide sufficient evidence that Bank Saderat was involved in Iran's nuclear program when the bloc targeted it with sanctions starting in July 2010. Earlier, the court issued a similar ruling about of Bank Mellat, the biggest private sector lender in Iran.
       (Reuters, February 6)

January 2013:

- In a letter dated January 23, the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI) informed the United Nations that it was planning to upgrade its uranium enrichment plant at Natanz by installing more advanced centrifuges, the IR2M. The new centifuge can enrich two or three times faster than the present equipment being used by Tehran, according to the Associated Press. The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) sent a letter to member states saying Iran had informed the agency of its plans to use the improved machines at its fuel enrichment plant in Natanz.
       (BBC News, January 31)

- Industry sources, quoting shipping and customs data, said that Iran's crude oil exports in December 2012 were at their highest level since the imposition of European Union sanctions on Iran's energy sector in Summer 2012. Experts warned that increased demand from China, India and Japan have allowed the Islamic Republic to boost its exports. Overall, Western sanctions against Iran have succeeded in halving Iran's oil exports from 2011 to 2012, causing the loss of billions of dollars in revenue, however there is no consensus whether the sanctions are actually affecting Iran's nuclear program. "We continue to engage in close consultations with our international partners on U.S. sanctions with the objective of maintaining pressure on Iran to comply with its international obligations," said U.S. State Department spokesman John Finn.
       (Reuters, January 31)

- Japanese police arrested two men and one woman for sending money to an Iranian shipping company in violation of sanctions against the Islamic Republic. The funds are believed to have been wired to a firm that is involved with Iran's nuclear weapons program. The three suspects, who work for the Ben Line Agencies Japan shipping company, have denied the charges that they sent 14 million yen (~$160,000) to a Singapore-based company with known connections to the government-backed Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines (IRISL). Investigators say these are Japan’s first arrests made in relation to sanctions on Iran.
       (Japan Daily Press, January 23)

- Vali Nasr, dean of the Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies at Johns Hopkins University in Washington D.C., said during the World Economic Forum in Davos that the sanctions regime against Iran over its nuclear activity "really has reached its end." He later added, "you really are looking at a scenario where Iran is going to rush very quickly towards nuclear power, because they also think, like North Korea, that (then) you have much more leverage to get rid of these sanctions."
       (Associated Press, January 23)

- Adam Szubin, director the US Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control, which supervises American enforcement of sanctions on Iran, said that despite the economic sanctions levied against the Islamic Republic, Tehran is still finding some ways to bypass them. Szubin noted that the Iranians were using private exchange houses and trading companies in other countries, masking transactions with fake identities and relying on the paperless practice known as hawala, common in parts of the Middle East and Asia, in which money is transferred informally and often illegally through trustworthy couriers. “This is an evolving and emerging threat,” Szubin said. “Two years ago we saw little of this because Iran was able to find banks that were able to handle its business.”
       (New York Times, January 10)

- Israeli Finance Minister Yuval Steinitz visited Washington to press senior US officials to lay out a tougher line on the Islamic Republic’s nuclear activities. The time has come for President Barack Obama to give Iran a “very clear ultimatum, very clear deadline combined with a very credible also military threat” Steinitz told a group of reporters before planned meetings with Secretary Timothy F. Geithner and other administration officials. Steinitz said he would discuss with Geithner and other White House and State Department officials what Israel perceives as loopholes in sanctions and Iran’s efforts to subvert legal restrictions.
       (Jerusalem Post, January 8)

- Gholam Reza Kateb, head of the Iranian parliament’s budget committee, said oil exports have dropped 40 percent in the last nine months and revenues from the oil and gas exports have dropped by 45 percent. He said the reduction is in direct correlation to the sanctions levied on Iran over its nuclear program. Despite the significant hit to Iran's economy, its leaders have given no indication that they might give in to the pressure and scale back their nuclear development program.
       (Washington Post, January 7)

- On January 3, US President Barack Obama signed into law the 2013 National Defense Authorization Act, including additional sanctions levied against Iranian energy, shipping and shipbuilding sectors as well as Iran's ports, blacklisting them as "entities of proliferation concern." The bill, HR 4310, passed both houses of the Congress in December 2012 and was signed by President Obama without amendment on any of the Iran-related sections. The bill also imposes penalties on anyone caught supplying precious metals to Iran and sanctions on Iranian broadcasting. Additionally, the billI targets the state broadcast network, called the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting, which the law says violated human rights by broadcasting forced confessions and show trials. The law orders the U.S. Treasury to slap sanctions on Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting and its president, Ezzatollah Zargami.
       (Wall Street Journal, January 3)

December 2012:

- The U.S. put new sanctions on Iran that targeted a handful of companies and individuals purportedly giving materials and technology to Iran's nuclear program. Among those targeted are Professor Fereydoun Abbasi Davani, who heads the Iran Atomic Energy Organization. The companies on this sanctions list are: FaraTech, the Neda Industrial Group, Aria Nikan Marine Industry, Towled Abzar Boreshi, Iran Pouya, Terjerat Gostar, and Tarh O Palayesh.
       (CNN, December 14)

- Canada amended its Special Economic Measures: Iran Regulations to list an additional 98 entities associated with the Iranian regime as designated persons. The amendment increases the pressure on entities that support Iran's nuclear program including but not limited to the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps and the Basij paramilitary organization. These measures also target economic sectors that indirectly support or provide funding to the Iranian nuclear program, such as oil and gas, mining, metals, and shipping. Finally, the amended regulations help further to isolate Iran from the global financial infrastructure.
      (CTV News, December 11)

November 2012:

- The U.S. Senate unanimously approved new sanctions on Iran's energy, port, shipping and non-shipping sectors in yet another move to pressure Tehran over its nuclear program. "We must be clear to the Iranians that toughing it out and waiting it out is not an option, that it will only get worse," said Democratic Senator Robert Menendez, who co-sponsored the sanctions bill with Republic Senator Mark Kirk and Independent Senator Joe Lieberman. The sanctions include measures aimed at stopping the flow of gold from Turkey to Iran but maintains exemptions for countries that have yet to make significant cuts to their purchases of Iranian crude oil.
       (Haaretz, November 30)

- In late November, Turkish Deputy Prime Minister and top economic policy make Ali Babacan announced that his country has sidestepped US and European sanctions against Iran by paying for natural gas imports with gold. "In essence, gold exports [to Iran] end up like payments for our natural gas purchases," Mr. Babacan said. "Turkey is depositing the payment for the gas we purchase from Iran to Iran's account in Turkey." Western sanctions against the Iranian energy sector bans the Islamic Republic from receiving payments for gas exports in dollars or euros and Turkey's announcement sheds light on how countries breach the international sanctions regime.
       (Wall Street Journal, November 23)

- The U.S. Treasury Department imposed sanctions on 17 Iranian individuals and entities involved in the government's censorship activities and support for terrorism. They include Ali Fazli, deputy commander of the Basig militia that has attacked websites; Reza Taghipour, minister of communications and information technology, who was responsible for jamming satellite television and blocking internet connectivity; and Rasool Jalili, who was involved in trying to obtain Internet monitoring equipment. Iran's Center to Investigate Organized Crime was also sanctioned for helping the government censor websites and identify opposition activists, while the Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance as well as the Iranian Press Supervisory Board were also sanctioned.
       (Bloomberg, November 8)

October 2012:

- The European Union banned the import of Iranian natural gas into EU countries in an effort to raise the pressure on Iran in hope of enticing the country to come to the negotiating table ready to discuss its nuclear program in earnest. This latest step is part of a new round of sanctions against Iran's banking, shipping, and industrial sectors. In the announcement, EU ministers expressed "serious and deepening concerns" over Iran's nuclear progress and underlined that "the restrictive measures agreed [to] are aimed at affecting Iran's nuclear program and revenues of the Iranian regime to fund its program and are not aimed at the Iranian people."

- A leading European satellite provider took 19 Iranian television and radio broadcasters off the air due to EU sanctions punishing human rights abusers.

- The International Monetary Fund (IMF) projected that Iran will be able to lower its currently high inflation rate despite Western-imposed sanctions. According to the IMF's semi-annual World Economic Outlook, Iran's economy will not collapse as a result of the strong rounds of economic sanctions, even though they are hurting its oil exports severely. However, much of the IMF analysis is based on information provided by the Iranian government, which may not be entirely accurate. Additionally, the report was filed before the Iranian currency, the rial, plummeted by roughly a third against the dollar in a mere 10 days through October 2. Nevertheless, IMF experts estimate that Iranian unemployment will decline next year and that the country will experience a surplus of 2.4% GDP this year and 1.3% next year.

September 2012:

- In spite of the European Union's inclusion of Iran on its sanctions list, the German Academic Exchange Service (or Deutscher Akademischer Austausch Dienst, i.e. DAAD) signed a memorandum of understanding with Iran's Science, Research, and Technology ministry. DAAD acts with the approval of Germany's Foreign Ministry, so this latest development seems to indicate an uneven policy from Berlin vis-a-vis Iran's nuclear program.

- Iranian chief nuclear scientist Fereydoon Abbasi admitted to the Arabic daily newspaper Al-Hayat that the Iranian government has repeatedly in the past provided false information to international agencies such as the IAEA in order to protect its nuclear program. Abbasi did not specify the nature of the false information nor did he say when it had been presented. Accusing foreign intelligence services, such as Britain's MI6 of spying on Iran's nuclear program, Abbasi said, "We presented false information sometimes in order to protect our nuclear position and our achievements, as there is no other choice but to mislead foreign intelligence ... sometimes we present a weakness that we do not in fact really have, and sometimes we appear to have power without having it.”

- Despite sanctions aimed at slowing Iranian progress to develop nuclear weapons, a report released by the IAEA shows that Iran added 1,076 centrifuges to their Fordow enrichment facility, which already had 1,064. Additionally, the Islamic Republic has now amassed nearly 438 pounds of 20% enriched uranium at both the Fordow and Natanz plants.  At the same time, Iran is sharply increasing its capability to produce more rapidly the 20% enriched uranium and to go even higher to the 90%, weapons-grade level.

- The United States extended exemptions from sanctions on business with Iran to Japan and 10 European countries because they have significantly reduced their purchases of petroleum from the Islamic Republic. The US originally granted these 11 nations exemptions from sanctions in March 2012 as a way of forcing them to reduce their reliance on Iranian oil.  The new extensions will enable banks in Belgium, Britain, Czech Republic, Frnace, Germany, Greece, Italy, Netherlands, Poland, Spain and Japan to continue working with Iran without facing penalties for at least another 180 days.

- Despite what the United States and European Union call some of the toughest economic sanctions ever imposed, Iran is still finding legal ways to sell or barter oil to its most important markets in Asia. To continue selling crude oil to India, Tehran is accepting payment in rice, medicine, engineering supplies and steel. To sell to China, the Islamic Republic is delivering the oil on its own tankers backed by state insurance, not on the commercial tankers used in the past. And to deliver to Japan, Iran is having the Japanese furnish the multibillion-dollar marine insurance its ships need to carry Iranian oil.

- Russia and China joined the four major Western powers - the U.S., France, Germany and Britain - at an IAEA meeting to increase diplomatic pressure on Iran regarding its nuclear weapons program. The six world powers agreed on a draft resolution at the U.N. nuclear agency that admonishes Iran over its ever-growing uranium enrichment program and elucidates their preference for a peaceful resolution to the current dispute.

- The European Union began consideration of a new round of sanctions against Iran due to its continued drive towards amassing a nuclear weapons capability.  Despite Russian protests that sanctions have become "extra-territorial" in nature and are harming its own business interests, EU foreign ministers spoke of the need to increase pressure on Iran for failing to make progress in negotations over it nuclear program.  French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius said, "we consider unacceptable, highly dangerous, the prospect of Iran possessing nuclear weapons." "Atomic weapons in Iran are not acceptable," added German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle.

August 2012:

2011:

2010:

- A July 2010 AFP report revealed China has invested an estimated $40 billion in Iran's oil and gas sector. According to Iran's Deputy Oil Minister, “The volume [of Chinese investment] in upstream projects is 29 billion dollars.” He also added that China signed contracts worth an additional $10 billion in petrochemicals, refineries and oil and gas pipeline projects.

- In January 2010, a top Russian arms trade official said Russia still considered Iran a valuable customer for its weapons and that no international agreements bar Russia from selling weapons to Tehran. In June 2010, despite the passing of UN Security Council Resolution 1929, Russia still said sanctions do not forbid the delivery of S-300 air-defense missiles to Iran.

- As of January 2010, there were around 1,000 Italian companies active in Iran, including Fiat, Ansaldo, Eni, Danieli, Duferco, and Maire Tecnimont, which signed a €200 million (~$287 million) gas deal with Iran. Other Italian companies, such as Carlo Gavazzi Space, have even equipped the regime's military and contributed to Iran's satellite program.

- From 2000-2010, the U.S. Treasury Department granted nearly 10,000 special licenses to American companies so they could sell products in Iran and other countries the U.S. considers sponsors of terrorism. Most of the licenses were granted under a law allowing trade in humanitarian goods, though they included products as diverse as cigarettes and chewing gum.

2009:

2008:

2000 - 2007:

In addition:

All of the aforementioned nations maintain that they are not violating Security Council Resolution 1737. Trading with Iran and importing goods from the country cannot, the countries claim, contribute to Iran's threat of creating a nuclear bomb. Any investment in Iran, however, bolsters its economy and provides revenues that can directly or indirectly (by freeing up other resources) be used for nuclear weapons development.

Iran might not be discouraged from its goal of producing nuclear weapons by total compliance of all nations with existing sanctions, or even stricter sanctions, but it is evident that the present weak, unenforceable and widely ignored policy has not had the desired effect.

Sources:

- AFP (August 25, 2008); (September 8, 2009); (September 10, 2012)
- Bloomberg (November 8, 2012)
- CNBC (August 30, 2012)
- Commentary Magazine (October 10, 2012)
- Der Spiegel (January 24, 2012)
- The Diplomat (June 14, 2012)
- European Jewish Congress
- Fars News Agency
- Financial Times (September 23, 2009)
- Fox News(March 20, 2012)
- The Guardian (August 15, 2012)
- Gulf in the Media (January 22, 2011), (August 9, 2011);
- Haaretz (March 20, 2012)
- International Business Times (April 5, 2012)
- International Institute for Strategic Studies (July 30, 2012)
- Jerusalem Post (June 11, 2009), (Jan 28, 2010), (June 10, 2010), (July 31, 2010), (Jan 9, 2011); (Jan 30, 2012); (April 18, 2012); (July 9, 2012)
- The Jewish Journal (July 26, 2010)
- Los Angeles Times, (December 6, 2008); (September 14, 2012)
- NewsBriefsOman
- New York Times (March 6, 2010), (December 23, 2010); (September 20, 2012)
- Reuters (Nov 27, 2008); (Dec 9, 2008); (Nov 24, 2011); (April 13, 2012), (April 22, 2012), (May 9, 2012); (May 26, 2012); (Sept 12, 2012); (October 9, 2012)
- The U.S. State Department (November 2008); (July 2012)
- The Telegraph (May 3, 2012); (August 29, 2012)
- The Times of Israel (July 25, 2012); (August 21, 2012); (October 15, 2012)
- The Wall Street Journal (Feb 6, 2009); (Sept 11, 2009); (Jan 14, 2010); (Jan 23, 2012); (May 21, 2012)
- The Washington Times (June 27, 2010)
- The Washington Post (June 26, 2012); (July 30, 2012); (August 1, 2012)
- UK Foreign & Commonwealth Office (June 26, 2012)
- Washington Institute for Near East Policy (January 7, 2011)
- Washington Post (January 24, 2012); (March 1, 2012); (September 11, 2012)
- Xinhua News (September 15, 2012)
- Ynet (January 28, 2010)

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